Spirited Away: The Darkness
by Leovanna
Summary: "Why am I special? Why do I have to face The Darkness? Why can't I just be normal?" I asked.   Haku turned around, "Because Chihiro you were never normal." He leaned in and kissed me once more.  Beware Lemons!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Spirited Away franchise, although I wish I did.**

**Chihiro is now twenty. Ten years passed since she last was in the Spirit World, since then she had many boyfriends and a loving family, but her carefree life will soon be over.**

* * *

Chapter One

Déjà-vu

* * *

I looked over my shoulder to stare outside the window. I smiled today was Saturday and I would be able to go back home. Classes at University were hard and I was really starting to get fed up with them, especially with my English teacher—he was a nice guy and all, but it was as though I was losing my English instead of improving it. I finished doing my bed and I walked out of the school residences with a few of my clothes for the weekend in my backpack. The apartments were stale gray and too small for three girls to live in them. They only had one small bathroom and no living room. Daddy got me a Lexus so that I would be able to get back home alone, without asking him or my mom for a lift. I couldn't wait to get back to my little blue house. Mom had promised me we were going to have Italian for dinner.

I jumped into my black car and slid the key in the key whole and I listened to the motor's silent purrs. I put the car in drive and I drove out of the drive way. I saw a bunch of students leaning on the wall of the College. They were talking and holding on to their books. A boy with a green jumper and mousy brown hair turned to look at me drive away. It was Peter Edinburgh. I sneered in disgust at the thought of his name. He was a transfer student from Scotland, and although he seemed nice at first, he was a complete douchebag. In fact all my ex-boyfriends were. It was as though there was a supernatural force that didn't want me to find love.

I took the first exit to get on the highway. I turned on the radio, the shrill voice of the announcer made its way into my ear, "COME ON DOWN! PARTY! PARTY! PARTY!" I was about to turn it off when he announced that the party was for the inauguration of the restoration of the Kohaku river. I smiled, ten year ago I had started a petition and the residents of the apartment buildings and condos found that the idea of a river running next to their building was very enticing, not to mention that my dad convinced them that the resale value would double if they had a river nearby.

For a brief second I wanted to do a U-turn and go see the river, but I had come to terms with my silly dream. In fact it was only a dream, nothing more. How could a grown woman still believe in dragons, witches, monsters, and Bath Houses for spirits? Daddy always told me I had a vivid imagination. When I told mom she laughed it off and gave me a sketch book so that I could draw my "Ideas" as she called them. At first that was all I did. I drew, drew and drew. I could have gotten carpal tunnel syndrome. Luckily I did not. Thinking back, I had drawn a boy, a dragon, two old ladies, a man with too many arms, a young woman, something black with a mask for a face, a big baby and a bird with an old lady's face, and a bunch of strange monsters. When I was younger I was so positive that they were real, everyone thought I was a freak. Then I went to high school, became a cheerleader and I got popular.

Sometimes I think that's why I stopped believing, all my friends would have thought I was freak and I was sick of being one. The only thing that made me believe that it wasn't a dream was the purple hairband that I carried everywhere with me, but mom said I had it way before we moved. I continued driving and I turned to look at the sea to my left. I sighed, it was only a dream. I needed to stop thinking of that especially now after midterm. I thought of Cho and Aimi and then I smiled knowing that they would probably turn all my silent questioning into jokes. The University was not far away from home, maybe forty miles or so. I hadn't seen mom and dad in so long. It was nice to know I was finally going home.

There was something that moved in the sea, and it jumped onto the beach, only to jump once again on the hood of my car. It was yellow and it looked like a giant chick. I screamed and the car swerved. I had almost lost the control of it, but I hurled the car towards the next exit to get off of the highway. Thankfully it was close by. At first the exit was a paved street, then it turned to rubble, only to become dirt road.

"_Don't worry I got four well drive_." I heard a voice say in my head. It was my dad's voice. I could see tiny little houses on the edge of the road. I drove quickly not wanting to linger on this road and I wanted to find a perpendicular street as fast as I could so that I could be able to go home and eat the pizza that my mom made for me. There was no street to get me back to the highway.

I think the road went on forever, until a large round statue filled with moss popped in the middle of this forsaken street. I slammed my foot on the break. Behind the statue was a red deserted stone temple. I put the car in park, and took out the key. I got out of my vehicle with my backpack. I moved towards the familiar building and I touched the stone façade, it was not stone… it was plaster. I walked closer to the entrance, it was a deep tunnel and I could not see a speck of light at the end of it. The wind was gently urging me to go inside. I saw a shade pass quickly by me and when I turned to see what it was—there was nothing.

"Weird…" I muttered as I started walking in the dark tunnel… this was all too familiar.

For some reason I knew that there was going to be a room that looked exactly like a train station at the end of the tunnel. I sat down on one of the wooden benches that were next to a stone pillar and I looked at the stained glass windows. I could see that the doors were wide open and I could see green fields and behind them a little hill with stairs and on top of those stairs was a frog. The amphibian's mouth was wide open and beneath him was growing, like on many of the other statues, moss. I got up and walked towards the stairs. I could not help but notice that there was a rocky trail right before the stairs.

Between the rocks there was water flowing, "_I guess they were going to put a river here_." I heard my dad's voice say once again. I jumped from rock to rock until I reached the stairs. There was an amazing intoxicating aroma that filled the air, but I knew better than to follow it, even if my stomach was grumbling loudly.

I walked around, but I noticed that they were only restaurants—could it be? I continued walking and went up the stair and came face to face with a bridge and a large building. I put my backpack on the floor and unzipped it. I moved some of my clothes around until I reached my sketch book. I opened it and found the page that I was looking for. I help it up in front of me. It was the same exact building! I was back in the spirit world. I was overcome with emotions, I had to sit down. I sat on the stairs and held my sketch book tightly in my hands.

"I have to be dreaming." I muttered looking in front of me at the multitude of restaurants. "This is not real… it never was."

I turned to look at the bath house—it was real, I was back. It was all so dizzying. I laid my head down on the stairs and closed my eyes; I was going to wake up in my bed, in my parents' house, first thing in the morning.

When I half-opened my eyes, I was in bed, but not on my mattress and not in my room. People were muttering around me, I could hear such things as, "Did you give her some food?" "Do you think it's her?" "I wonder why she stayed on the stairs?" They all seemed like familiar voices. I lifted my head up a bit.

"AH!" I screamed as I saw a giant toad in front of me.

"Wha? What is it?" It asked and I moved even more far away from it when I noticed it could talk. Behind him was an army of strangely dressed women, and weird frog like men… I lifted the bed sheets to my chin and blinked many times, thinking that maybe they would disappear that way. The toad in front of me got hit by a beautiful slender woman with brown hair that was tied back.

"Don't you see you're scaring her idiot." She said to him condescendingly. She looked at me and smiled. I wanted to smile back, but I was far too scared. "See what you did!" She scowled the thing again.

"Please don't be mean to him." I breathed with slightly more courage, I felt guilty for the poor thing… he didn't mean to frighten me.

"You haven't changed a bit, your still a big dope." She said as she looked at me. "Say thanks to the boiler man, he's really sticking his neck out for you." I remembered her—Rin—it was Rin! I flung the sheets off of me and jumped into her arms. She had been so nice to me. Rin had acted the same way a big sister would. She took care of me, brought me food, helped me with my shores around the Bath House… it was all coming back to me.

"Rin! Oh I can't believe that I thought you didn't exist!" I said to her, I turned to look around. These were all the employees of the Bath House. They had probably found me sleeping on the stairs and brought me in. I was mesmerized that I hadn't been turned into a pig.

"Yubaba is on her way." A man said as he walked in, he had an overgrown mustache, he smelled like smoke, he wore a brown shirt and he had too many arms. I couldn't help but recognize Kamajii instantly. He smiled at me and gave me a thumb up. "Good to see you again Sen."

"Kamajii!" I squealed in delight. It was not, after all, a stupid childhood dream. My friends existed. In my heart I knew that they always existed, but—I was so glad to know that I was not crazy. Then I realized that I hadn't left this place with the greatest memory of Yubaba. Now, I was really wondering why I hadn't been turned into a pig. I heard footsteps next to the door and I saw her short silhouette come into view.

Her eyes accessed the room and then they fell on me. She grinned, and took a puff of cigarette. She inhaled and held her breath for a second and during that second I started to think about all the things that she could do to me. I did not want to work for the Bath House; one time was enough, thank you. I guess she was going to turn me into a pig, or maybe into a lump of coal… I'd rather be a lump of coal that way I wouldn't feel any pain. She took one step towards me and shook her head. I gulped.

"Chihiro, what are you doing here?" She asked, but she was not rude or angry. Yubaba sounded genuinely concerned.

I shook my head vigorously and shrugged at the same time. I didn't know what to tell her. After all these years, I did not know what I was doing here either. She sighed and took another puff of cigarette. With her left hand she massaged her left temple. Her eyes narrowed as though she was thinking. "Did you feed her?" She asked Rin.

Rin shook her head.

"And she hasn't started to disappear yet, even though it's night time?" She questioned her again.

Rin shook her head again.

"Oh dear—well I might as well go get Kohaku." She said.

She turned to leave.

"Wait!" I called after her, "What is going on?"

"You've always belonged to both worlds Chihiro." Yubaba answered gently as she left. "This means I owe Zeniba some gold."

I looked at Rin and Kamajii waiting for answers.

"The Spirit World changed a lot ever since you left Sen." They answered and all of the employees nodded behind them.

"What about Haku—Kohaku, why is he still here?" I asked.

"He wanted to stay, when you left something changed in Yubaba. I figured it was because of Boh, he grew up to be a fine little bugger."


	2. Chapter 2

Hope you enjoyed the first chapter.

Disclaimer: Spirited away does not belong to me.

* * *

Chapter Two

Kohaku

* * *

"What do you mean he grew up into a fine little bugger?" I asked as I got up from the mattress. I noticed that I wasn't wearing my clothes anymore, but a beautiful white silk nightgown. I looked at Rin, she smiled at me and I figured she was probably the one who changed me.

"Well, after you left, he started to change—both physically and psychologically. We all figured it was because he was no longer being smothered by Yubaba, especially since she stopped treating him like a baby. He still is a little—big—but he's starting to look more and more like his—" Kamajii stopped talking and everyone lowered their heads. I blinked, but I didn't ask any more questions. In fact I was dying to see Kohaku, but from what I could see no one was even mentioning him. Yubaba had been the only one.

"Rin can I have my backpack back please?" I asked her sweetly. She nodded and handed me the purple backpack. I unzipped it and took out a pair of jean, a simple white blouse, and my white ballerina shoes. I had stopped wearing sneakers a while ago. Rin looked at them curiously and touched the texture of the shoes. She was taken aback by the sensation of plastic under her fingers. I thought for a second that maybe I should have given them to her and just put on my red high heeled shoes, but she her expression turned from curious to disgusted.

"Do I have to change in front of everyone?" I asked. I had no problem with that, mostly because when I was a cheerleader we had to all change in the same room, but everyone seemed panicky because of what I had asked. The men left the room, Kamajii included and most of the female workers left also. There were only a few women who remained. I guess they were curious also about my strange clothing. Well, strange for them. I put on my pants. I noticed that I was wearing underwear, which I wasn't before. I had forgotten to take out a bra from my backpack. I took out my white lacy one… actually I had only brought three, white, black and beige.

I took off my nightgown and Rin turned her head away so she didn't have to look at my naked torso. I put on my bra and then buttoned my blouse. I slipped on my little ballerina shoes on and looked at Rin. "How do I look?" I asked her smiling. She walked in front of me and then made a full circle as she examined me.

"Well I don't understand why you put on those 'shoes' as you call them, wouldn't you rather walk barefoot?" She said to me puzzled.

I shook my head, "nope, I rather wear shoes." I looked over her shoulder to see the stairs going up towards the tubs, and then maybe Kohaku was just above those in Yubaba office. Rin looked behind her and she understood what I was thinking. She rolled her eyes and put her hand on her waist, she looked at me with a mocking expression on her face. Maybe she knew something about Kohaku… it had been ten years, and sometimes I would dream of being with him, but he had not kept his promise to me. I was a little mad at him because of that. I had never had a real relationship with a man because I was always comparing them to him. He had probably moved on anyway. Clearly he must have found another dragon girl and they've been together ever since I set him free.

I got angry when the idea of Kohaku being with another woman popped into my head. Rin let out an exasperated sigh and snapped her fingers as she pointed towards the door. "Will you just go already or are you going to stand here like a little nitwit?"

I shook my head as I came out of my reverie. "Yeah I'm going." I whispered as I minded myself to go and confront this boy who had almost ruined my entire love life. I was twenty and I only had been kissed a handful of time. I was beautiful and somehow I couldn't understand why guys seemed to shy away from me. I took one deep breath and move my left foot forwards.

"Good luck Sen." Rin cried behind me as I started marching up the stairs.

I made it to the floor with the tubs and the reception area. I could see many spirits taking their bath, and I recognized the Radish Spirit in one of the larger tubs. He waved his white hand at me. I waved back surprised that he remembered me. When I passed by the foreman he gaped at me and his mouth was wide opened. I beamed as I noticed that he kept looking at me even as I continued my way to the elevator, which would led me to Yubaba's office. When I reached the elevator I looked behind and saw that all the clients were observing me. I giggled uncomfortably and I looked for the lever that would bring me to next floor. When I found it I pulled on the golden lever and waited for it to come down. I quickly steeped into my vessel when it arrived.

It took for ever to get to my destination, but when I reached my desired floor, I couldn't help but reminisce. Every corner was decorated lavishly; it was gaudy and extravagant to my taste. I walked to Yubaba doors and at the sight of me even the door knob was speechless. I could hear murmurs coming from inside the room. I lowered myself so I could be able to see through the keyhole. I saw Yubaba speaking to two other people, but I couldn't see them. "You know it's rude to spy on people." The door knob said to me in its high pitched voice.

I brought my index to my lips as a sign for it to stay quiet.

"Well fine, but you could just walk in." It said annoyed. "They were waiting for you anyway."

"Oh," I replied stupidly as I opened the door. When I was in the room three pairs of eyes turned to me, one pair looked at me knowingly, the other pair admired me happily, and the last pair of green eyes stared at me angrily. I closed my brown eyes for a second to erase the last pair from my mind. I heard someone stomping towards me and then I felt a pair of strong arms lift me from the floor. I opened one eye and saw a bald head, and a big childlike looking boy, with chubby cheek he was wearing a long red tunic. "Boh?" I choked out.

"Yay! Chihiro you're back!" He chanted happily as he put me down. I got to get a good look at him. He had indeed changed, even though he was abnormally large and bald, he seemed to be a ten year old boy instead of a giant toddler. He looked at his mother and then turned his attention back to me. "You're pretty Chihiro!" He said as he looked at me.

I looked at my feet slightly embarrassed. "Thanks Boh, you look very debonair yourself."

He beamed proudly. Yubaba approached us and I couldn't help but notice how small she was compared to her son. She replaced a strand of her grey hair as she examined me. "What do you think Kohaku?" She said as she turned to the young man that was standing near her the window. He stopped looking outside and walked nonchalantly towards us with a bored look on his face, which was a strange contrast with the look of sheer anger he had cast only seconds earlier. His black hair waved casually in the wind as he walked, but I there was no wind. 'Stupid magic.' I thought silently to myself.

He stopped a few feet away from me, he had grown and was now much more muscular than the last time I had seen him. He was still pale looking and many of his facial features had not changed with time. With crossed arms and he had a reprimanding look on his face, he examined me just like Yubaba had done before him. He let out a long tired sigh and turned to Yubaba. "I don't think it's a good thing." He said to her. She caressed her chin as she thought.

"Well, of course it is!" She said as she had her very own eureka moment. "She was the key to everything last time!"

"Can I please know what I am doing here?" I asked them without trying to sound too confused. "I would like to go home please; my mom and dad are probably worried sick by now."

Kohaku nodded, "she's right. She does not belong here."

I grimaced hurt by his comment, but Yubaba turned to me, "don't mind him, he just needs to get adjusted to the idea."

"What idea?" I asked.

"Well Chihiro, let me start from the beginning, but first, I must apologize because our last time together was not a very pleasant one—"

"That's okay." I said interjecting.

She smiled and shook her head, "no there was no excuse. You see about a century before your arrival, as well as Kohaku arrival, there was a great darkness that engulfed the spirit world. Zeniba, my husband and I fought this darkness and we managed to enclose it in the domain of the human spirits… it was a horrible choice and my husband, Boh's father, made the ultimate sacrifice to contain the darkness. Evidently it didn't spread, but I grew bitter afterwards. I had a little hope left in me when I found out that I was pregnant. I shielded Boh from any type of harm. Zeniba tried to help me, but I just pushed her away. I smothered Boh and because of me he was unable to grow up… I built this Bath House to help me cope with my loss.

I grew greedy and I couldn't see just how much my own soul had grown dark. I had become evil, to the point that I wanted to steal my sister's magic. Then you came, and you were so pure and filled with light. You were able to bring, in your short stay here, joy to every person you met. You've brought freedom, not only to Kohaku, but also to No Face, Boh and myself, but when you left something horrible happened. Darkness started to spread once more."

"Why?" I asked her hypnotized by her story.

"Because my dear girl, where there is light there will always be darkness. Your light was so bright that the darkness was called to it." She answered and I felt a sickening feeling take over my body. Because of me darkness had started to spread in the spirit world. "Oh! Don't look so down," Yubaba said laughing, "It was actually a good thing, more spirits have united to face this treat, and it was all thanks to you."

"Ah, but what is this darkness?" I asked puzzled by this unknown treat.

"Spirits of evil unrepentant humans." She answered. "But because you are so pure Chihiro, you must be the key! You are the only one that can bring light back into their hearts—"

"That's enough!" Kohaku snapped.

Yubaba rolled her eyes and took Boh's hand, "come now, let's put you to bed. You can play with Sen tomorrow morning."

Boh yawned and followed his mother to his room. He waved at me good night before going to bed. I turned to Kohaku and glared at him.

He was taken aback by my glare, 'if looks could kill, you'd be dead!' I thought to myself. He stepped backwards and his nose wrinkled. I guess I smelled too human to his taste. Bastard.

"What, it's not like I wanted to be here! How dare you look at me as though I'm garbage? After all I did for you!" I screamed at him. "Oh, of course let's not forget the goddamn promise you made! You know I actually believed your bullshit for years! I thought that maybe you were the one for me, but now I see you're just another asshole like all the other guys I've been with!"

His head snapped up at the mention of other men. He looked at me; his eyes were burning with rage. "There were others?"

I narrowed my eyes and my mouth fell open in shock, "Yes, there were others. I wasn't going to spend my entire life waiting for a stupid dragon! Especially when I started thinking that you were not even real." I barked at him. "It's not like you have kept your word." I saw his indignation when I said what I said, but I continued. "Either way, it's not like you wanted to see me, I can see that clearly in your face." I turned and walked away.

Fuck him, he didn't matter, where was he anyways when I needed him? I was a grown woman now. I didn't need to crawl at his feet and I didn't need to feel unwanted. I didn't see Yubaba walk out of Boh's room, nor did I hear her say to Kohaku to run after me.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own spirited Away and I never will.

* * *

Chapter Three

Not Giving Up

* * *

I walked down the stairs to get to the employees bed chambers. There was not a soul. I opened the closet and took out a mattress and some bed sheets. I jumped slightly when I felt a hand on my shoulder. I dropped the mattress on the floor and turned around to attack this trespasser. I was about to throw the first punch and I regretted not doing so when I realized it was Kohaku.

"What do you want?" I asked bitterly as I bent down to pick up my bed from off the floor. He sighed but said nothing. I was tired so I started making my bed and I ignored him. I could feel his body coiling up behind me, to think that I was actually exited to see him.

I undid the first button of my blouse, and I continued looking in the closet for the nightgown that Rin had put on me. I hummed slightly as I looked. I was completely ignoring him. I silently sang _Mama Mia_ from Abba.

"Just one look and I can hear the bells ring—just one look and I forget everything." I continued humming as I searched and I could feel the anger around him growing as I gave him the cold shoulder. I found the nightgown and I undid my blouse completely. I had never been a very inhibited person, so I really didn't care if he saw me naked or not.

I unclasped my bra and threw both my blouse and the bra on the floor. I put on my nightgown and unbuttoned my jeans. They slid off easily and without a hassle. I undid my hair and placed my purple elastic in the pocket of my pants. I turned to look at him. "What do you want?" I repeated as I stared him down.

"How did you get here?" He asked me coldly.

"Geese Louise!" I breathed out. "Answer my question first." I ordered him.

"I want to know how the hell you got here!" He snapped aggressively.

I shook my head in annoyance, if he thought he was going to get an answer from me when he was acting like a jerk he was wrong. I was only going to answer his questions when he would act like a gentleman. Rin burst in the room laughing. "Sen you have to come! We found your music thingy and we're having a blast—come on get dressed again!" She said to me as she danced her way towards us. They had probably found my Ipod and the speakers. Rin was clearly drunk because she took off my nightgown. I covered my breast and turned around. She ordered me to lift my arms and I felt the sensation of cotton cover my body. It was my favourite sundress; it was yellow and bright, just like a summer day.

"Come on!" She said dragging me behind her.

Everyone was dancing whether it was the employees or the clients. The Radish Spirit was dancing and he actually struggled with a few disco moves. Kamajii was moon walking and I couldn't help but laugh when I noted that Boh had snuck out of his bed and was dancing with everyone else. I could hear Abba coming from the speaker. A few of the female workers were trying to sing along to _Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!_ , but their attempt at karaoke was rather bad. A worker taped my shoulder.

"You want to dance Sen?" He asked his face was full of hope.

"Of course." I said sweetly as he took my hand to dance. His hand was moist and I tried not to look too grossed out.

"You remember me, right?" he said hopefully, there was something strange in his eyes.

I shook my head, his face was familiar, but all the spirits that worked in the Bath House looked alike. "No I'm sorry."

"I'm the foreman, you know, I didn't want to give you a bath token." He said more hopeful.

Oh—him, I couldn't remember his name. "Yes I remember." I said to him and he beamed a large smile.

"I knew you would remember." He said happily as he spun me around. "You look amazing Sen! Better than a hundred toasted newts."

"Thank you." I told him as nicely as he tried to move his body closer to mine. I stepped back.

Luckily Kamajii was coming my way, "get away from her you old lecherous slug." He said as he pushed the ex-foreman back. "You know who she belongs to!" Kamajii laced one of his long spidery arms around me. "Good to see you Chihiro." He told me. "Fine gizmo you brought with you. Is that a human doodad?"

"Yes it is, actually it's very popular in the human world." I answered.

He tried to bust a move, but he failed and fell on his butt. I burst out laughing as I tried to help him up. "It's very different from our music. It's more rhythmic."

"Well this is old music, in human standards. You should hear some of the music that is playing right now. It's much more rhythmic." I said, although I doubted that Kamajii would have understood or even appreciated Lady Gaga. "I'm very tired." I said to Kamajii, this was now my second attempt at going to bed. He nodded and I motioned to Rin that I was leaving. Boh waved once again as he saw me leave. I looked at my friends one last time. They were all having so much fun. It warmed my heart to see them all so cheerful. All except one.

When I made it back to my room, I noticed that my bed was already made. My clothing was neatly folded by it, and my nightgown was softly laid on my pillow. Haku had most likely done this as a peace gesture. Once again I undressed and put on the nightgown. I looked in my backpack to see if maybe I had thought of bringing some toothpaste, but I had only brought my toothbrush. I went out on the balcony to get some fresh air. There was a soft breeze and it felt so nice. I lifted myself up on the on the fence and slung myself gracefully on the other side of the balcony. I sat down on the fence and I looked up at the sky. The stars were shining bright. I had never seen them shimmer this much back home. I wondered why Kohaku was being so rude to me.

The wind continued blowing and I wondered why Yubaba thought that I could be able face, what she called, "the darkness". I felt sorry for the loss of her husband. I understood why she acted the way she did. To be frank, she had never been evil, just selfish, and she never did anything wrong in my regards—apart changing my parents into pigs. I sighed, what was I doing here anyways? Maybe Kohaku was right maybe I didn't belong here. I thought of mom and dad, they were probably freaking out. Especially dad, he had probably already called the police to tell them that his sweet daughter had not arrived from University. They had probably told him to call back in twenty four hours, but dad knew that I would never have missed pizza night. He was probably on his way to the University.

Poor daddy, poor mommy… she was probably on the phone with Cho or Aimi looking for me. She was probably thinking the worst. I wished that were a way I could tell them that I was okay. I looked up at the stars I figured whishing on them was useless. The moon was a perfect crescent in the sky. I looked at it trying to relax and clear my mind. "You still haven't answered my questions." A voice said behind me. Caught by surprise I lost my balance, and I fell from the balcony and nearly broke my neck. His soft hand caught me and held me close to his chest. He was warm and cozy… I didn't want to move from where I was.

I looked up and saw how his skin glowed in the moonlight and how his black hair shimmered like the billions of stars in the sky. His green eyes glanced down at me as we floated back up to the balcony and then he set me down on the floor. I was panting and trying not to look at him. What would he think about me now? I started hyperventilating. Not only had I almost died...I did look like a big dope!

He chuckled! I wanted to flip him off, but I could not remember how to use my hands.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

"Why would you care?" I spat.

He seemed taken aback by my comment. I regained a bit of composure, and I instantly felt remorse when I met his gaze. "I do care!" He started.

"No you don't." I muttered. "If you did you would have kept your promise."

"I was keeping my promise Chihiro, but I had no link to the human world until now!" He replied angrily.

I had forgotten about his link to his river. I felt slightly ashamed of never thinking about that.

He continued, "What are you doing here Chihiro? I made sure that you could never find the entrance to the spirit world. I cast a spell on the portal. How could you have found it?"

"I didn't find it by choice. This giant chick jumped out of the ocean, and landed on my car and I lost control. The first thing I did was take the first exit and it got me here." I answered curtly. "I didn't even believe this place even existed anymore."

"I see." He was somewhat relieved from some reason, talk about bipolar… I looked up at the sky and the stars shone more brightly than before. "I'm not unhappy to see you Chihiro. I'm actually very glad to see you, just not in these circumstances."

"What do you mean?" I said looking at my feet.

He lifted his hand and pointed towards the horizon. "Right behind Swamp Bottom there is a cloud of darkness. No Face has expanded to stop it from progressing any further. Zeniba and Yubaba have been trying to find a way to stop it completely and your name has come up too often to my taste… they think you're the key, but I can't have you be used as a weapon."

"You were trying to protect me." I smiled. "But if there is any way that I can help then I have to help or at least, try."

"You don't get it Chihiro, they think that if they send you into the middle of the darkness, then they—" He stopped talking and used the fence for support. "They want to use you as a sacrifice, just like Lord Ebisu. You will be turned to stone and your body will be a prison for all those souls. Only difference is that you have a human spirit, and because your spirit is pure, it makes you the most powerful being in the spirit world even if you don't have any magical ability."

"I see." I whispered.

"You do not understand, do you?" His hands were trembling, but out of fear this time. "If anything happens to you I could never continue living. Not in this world or the next, I can't live without you."

"As there ever been a human who has successfully contained the darkness?" I asked him seriously.

He shook his head. "We never even tried with a human."

"Then we don't know if or if not I am going to turn into stone. I didn't say that I agreed to being used as a weapon. This is the first time I'm actually hearing about this plan. But if there is a way that I can stop this, then I can't give up and look at the bright side; I'll look this good for the rest of eternity." I gestured my young body and laughed.

"You've always looked incredible, not just now, but there was something you said before that bothered me…" he looked away shyly. "You said that there were others… where there?"


	4. Chapter 4

**I hope you all enjoyed the previous chapters, and thank you for all the reviews.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Spirited away or any of the characters.**

* * *

Chapter Four

The Bedroom

* * *

"What do you mean?" I laughed as he rubbed the back of his head.

His green eyes started at the sky intently. I saw a few worry lines that etched across his forehead. To be honest, his jealousy was slightly endearing, but I couldn't lie to Haku. I looked up at the sky too and I took one good breath before answering… this was going to sound ridiculous to him. 'Oh Yes, I had a few boyfriends, but they all thought I was a freak who wouldn't put out and who was in love with an imaginary dragon.' Even in my opinion it sounded bizarre, but it was the truth. I turned by body completely so that I would be able to face him and I placed my hand in his. He looked at me with a worried expression, but I smiled at him reassuringly.

"Yes there were a few, a handful really. My relationship never lasted more than three weeks. I could almost tell you they were strictly platonic if I hadn't kissed some of them. I guess there was no human man that could compare to you, so for some reason it wouldn't work out." I said to him, but he appeared to be pensive. "What about you? A good looking man like you, the girls must have been all over you." I tried to hide the speck of jealousy that had grown inside of me.

He shook his head, "No I haven't been with another. My heart always belonged to the one who freed me."

You would think that your ego would grow twice its size if the boy of your dreams would declare his unconditional love to you, but actually it was a very humbling experience. I felt my cheeks grow red, but I smiled none the less. I felt the gap between our bodies become smaller. It felt right.

"You don't have to sleep here—I mean you can sleep in my chambers, I can bunk in Boh's room." He said to me as he saw me yawn.

I shook my head, "no I'm good. I wouldn't want to impose."

"You could actually sleep in a bed instead of a tiny uncomfortable mattress. You wouldn't be imposing." He told me as he smiled a dazzling smile.

The idea of a real bed was tempting. I looked up at him and nodded. He took me in his arms and I felt my heart flutter blissfully in my chest. I could help but gasp when I noticed that we were levitating. Kohaku looked down at me and his eyes glimmered ecstatically. I looked down and felt a dizzying sensation when I notice just how up in the air we were. I know I would have died if I fell from the balcony, but we were maybe another extra forty meters in the air. He put me down when we had reached the highest balcony, which was on Yubaba's floor.

He put me down and I opened the door that would lead me to his bedroom. The walls were painted royal blue, and the trim work and the crown molding were all painted gold, or maybe they were covered in gold. He had a large rosewood dresser standing tall and elegant in the northern corner of his bedroom. An overgrown golden mirror hung stylishly off the wall next to it. There were golden wall sconces every meter or so and candles burned slowly on them. In the middle of the room was an enormous king sized bed, which was dressed in the finest silk and linen I had ever seen. Hundreds of pillows had been thrown lavishly on it. On each side of the bed were side-tables made from rosewood also. On the one to the left there was an open book. Probably some book about magic that Haku was studying.

I turned my attention back to the bed. It was the type of bed that screamed "JUMP ON ME!", but I was scared of acting too human in front of Kohaku. In fact, it was the type of bed that looked too cozy and fluffy. It was something the emperor would sleep in, not a suburban girl like me, but I was far too exhausted to think about it. I just wanted to throw all the pillows on the floor and sleep. Slumber was all I craved. I hadn't noticed the trunk at the foot of the bed, it was large and the same shade of blue as the walls. I yawned once again and Haku lifted his hand and the pillows started floating up in the air. The trunk opened and slowly one by one the pillows went into it.

Kohaku moved forwards towards the bed. He pulled the sheets from off of it and gestured for me to go lay down. I moved too slowly for my taste. I felt my legs wobbled awkwardly as I walked, probably because of stress. I sat down on the bed and gently threw my legs on it. Kohaku tucked me in and he kissed my forehead. I smiled up at him as I started to feel my eyes grow heavy. He turned to leave, but for some reason my hand moved of his own accord and grabbed his shirt.

"Don't go…" I mumbled as I felt slumber's soft embrace take over. "Stay with me."

He sighed and moved on the other side. He laid down next to me. I moved closer to him. Innocently, I placed my head on his chest and I quickly fell asleep to the rhythm of his beating heart. Even in my slumber I could feel his hand softly caressing me hair. I could feel each of his fingers on my scalp; it was reassuring to know that even in my rest he was there. Then his breath seemed calmer than before and his hand fell on my shoulder. He too had fallen asleep. I could have slept this way for ever. I didn't want to go anywhere.

My night was filled with the sweetest dreams possible.

In the morning, light was pouring in from the opened windows and a soft breeze circled in the room. My eyes fluttered gently and I looked at Kohaku. He was still soundly asleep. I admired how his eyebrows were arched as he slept, how his eyelids were a perfect shade of ivory, how his nose was small but strong, how much I wanted to kiss his pale lips and how sometimes they would twitch when my breath would caress them. His nose wrinkled when I snuggled closer to him and he opened one lazy eye to look at me.

"Good morning." I muttered in his chest. I couldn't recall the last time had I slept so well.

He rubbed his eyes and lightly lifted himself up. He smiled down at me. I was, surely, smiling like an idiot.

"Good morning." He whispered back. "Did you sleep well?"

I nodded as I sifted on my stomach. I held my torso up with my forearms. He smiled at me and I could see that all traces of bitterness between us were gone now.

"I'm sorry that I did not let you sleep alone. I should have left when you fell asleep." He said timidly. He was ashamed that he had stayed with me, even though I asked him to do so. He put his arms behind his head and he looked up at the ceiling. I could hear his breathing becoming slightly more rapid.

"It's okay," I said trying to calm him down. "It's not like it's the first time I sleep with a boy."

His head snapped quickly in my direction and an expression of clear scandal was etched across his face. I rolled my eyes and giggled. I was still a virgin, but I had already bunked with Mike. Not that Mike was strait or anything like that. He was gay and didn't even think twice about his sexual preferences… he had been that way his entire life.

"Don't worry!" I said trying not to laugh. "Nothing happened, he's gay!"

Haku narrowed his eyes. I could have figured he wasn't acquainted with these types of expressions. I looked up at him and thought about how I was going to explain this. "Homosexual—" I started explaining, "people who only desire their own sex, they do not lust for the other gender—they only want sex with men if they're men…or women if their women…" He looked even more confused than before. "Oh my god Haku I don't know how to make this more simple."

"No I understand. I'm just surprised that humans would practice it." He told me. "It is a very common thing here in the Spirit World because we do not have the pressure of reproducing, but for humans… you have to reproduce."

"There are other ways to have children you know. Humans are smart. There is adoption; lord knows there are so many children who deserve a loving family. There are surrogates and sperm banks. There are test-tube babies too. We're not just limited to the 'old fashioned way'." I said to him proudly.

He seemed impressed by my declaration, but something he said caught my attention.

"What do you mean, you don't have to reproduce? Why is Boh alive then?" I asked.

"Yubaba desired a child with her husband, she needed Boh to keep his memory alive and also someone who would possess both their powers, but we live forever Chihiro. There is no need for us to make children."

"And what would happen if a spirit has a child with a human?" I asked stupidly.

He thought about what to answer for half a second. "Rumors say that the child would have to be killed—"

I gasped, but he caressed my back to appease me.

"The Child would be a danger to himself. He would not belong to either world. The fact that he would not be chained to a river, or a rock, or tree, or anything in the human world and still possess the full amount of power that a spirit has… that would make him a treat to both worlds. What if he were to be born with a tendency towards evil? He would be the most dangerous creature alive."

He saw me become slightly crestfallen.

"So you and I… we could never have children." I gasped when I realized that I had muttered those words aloud.

"Don't worry Chihiro; no child of yours could ever be evil. Not to mention you always seem to be the exception to the rule." He laughed and got out of bed.

"Where are you going?" I asked him.

"Are you not hungry?" He asked, my stomach grumbled at the mention of food.

"We'll a little." I said as he held out his hand to help me out of bed.

There was a knock on the door.

"Just in time!" He told me happily. "Come in."

Rin came in with her mouth hanging wide open. In her hands she had a tray with eggs, sausages, bacon, bread and a lot of fruit. She set the tray on the side-table and then she slid off my backpack that she was carrying. She had an irritated look on her face. She turned to Kohaku and glared at him.

"Well no wonder you didn't want to leave after you got a promotion!" She said. "And you never once invited anybody up here, sometimes Haku you can be very selfish." She then eyed me sheepishly and she too wrinkled her nose. "You could have at least waited one night Haku!" She said reprimanding him. He looked at his feet but said nothing.

I blinked. Waited one night for wha—what! Rin thought that Haku and I had—I giggled. I reached to get a piece of bread on the tray and I dipped it in the egg yolk. I could feel the blush crawling upwards towards my face. I chewed slowly thinking about what I was going to say to her.

"No Rin you got it all wrong. Haku and I only slept in the same bed. Nothing happened." I said to her trying to calm my own blush.

"No, I can smell it on you Chihiro, your sent as changed… you smell like—him, and in our world that only means one thing—"

I cut her off, "we didn't have sex!"

"No it means you're mates!" Rin said correcting me.

I think my eyes grew two sizes. I gaped at her unbelieving. I turned to Haku and he looked even more confused than I was.

"That can't be Rin. No one could bind us… Chihiro is a human spirit."

"There is always the exception to the rule." Rin said as she rubbed her.

"I tend to be that exception a little bit too often in my opinion." I muttered falling back on the bed.

"Sen mating is rare, even for spirits…" Rin said.

I turned my head to look at Haku. I guess he hadn't smelled anything because his face was a total blank. Could spirits go into shock? I reached out to get a grape from the tray, mated or not mated… I was still famished.

* * *

**Please Review**


	5. Chapter 5

Thanks to all the lovely reviews. They really encourage me to continue this story. So if you want faster chapters then you have to give me lots of reviews. For all the people who are confused about why I used Rin instead of Lin, there is a very simple reason. In Japanese R is L, if you read the subtitles it's actually written Rin and not Lin. I'm glad I could explain that.

Disclaimer: I do not own Spirited Away. I did not create Chihiro or Haku or even Yubaba for that matter.

* * *

**Chapter Five**

**Mated**

* * *

I finished chewing my raisin and swallowed. I looked at Rin and her gaze was fixated on a petrified Haku. I sighed and massaged my temple as I thought things through. What did she mean by mated, and what the hell was mating anyway? It sounded animalistic, deprived of emotions, and lacking any sense of love. It, also, sounded like it was a big deal. It was as though Kohaku had done something horrible and unforgivable. Rin had said that mating was rare even for spirits. Did that mean that it was impossible between humans or even between humans and spirits?

"Well what it mating." I asked Rin. She looked at me with wide eyes.

"You don't know what mating is?" She said to me disbelievingly. I groaned; clearly if I asked the question it was because I did not know the answer.

"Oh yeah, that's exactly why I asked you what it was." I said sarcastically.

Haku came out of his trance and turned his attention to me. "You could compare it to a marriage in the human world…only it's more powerful and it lasts an eternity."

"So is it like what Yubaba had with her husband?" I asked and they both shook their heads.

"No they were simply married… it's much more complicated than that." Haku muttered.

"Then if it's complicated, should we not go see Yubaba and ask for her advice, as well as granny's." I told him as I took another piece of bread and chewed on it calmly. I was not really preoccupied by this mating conundrum. I figured that Kohaku would probably piece everything together. I looked down at myself and then I got up from bed and took my backpack from off the floor. I walked back to the bed and set the backpack down on it. I opened my backpack and took out a pair of short jeans shorts and a pink camisole. I took out my beige strapless bra and turned around. "Is there a bathroom I can use?"

They blinked. Clearly, they were completely flabbergasted by my lack of interests in the matter. Haku nodded and pointed towards the large dresser. Next to it, almost completely hidden, was a door. I marched towards it and past by Haku. I saw him take a deep breath as I passed by. He was probably trying to see if what Rin had said was true.

I opened the door and walked in to the bathroom. I shouldn't have been surprised by the size of it. Of course everything on Yubaba's floor was oversized and covered in gold. I closed the door behind me. I could still hear them talking and muttering together. I took off my nightgown and walked towards the mirror that was standing over the golden vanity. I looked at my quasi naked body and leaned over the sink.

I started by looking at the roots of my hair. Somehow they appeared shinier. I touched a strand of my hair, it was soft. I examined my skin, it was flawless and creamy… there was not even one trace of imperfection on it. I gazed into my own eyes, and even they seemed to be more vibrant. I touched my thin rosy lips and they felt plumper. I trailed my hand from my jaw line down to my left breast—they felt bigger and perkier than before. I caressed my stomach and noticed that it was thinner. I grab my thighs; they we meatier and felt much more robust.

"Wow." I said to myself as I was mesmerized by the girl in front of me. I turned around to glance at my behind; my butt felt rounder and fleshier then before.

I put on my bra, shorts and top. I looked at myself once more… I wondered what had happened to my hair. It was perfectly curled and my bangs were now immaculately framing my face. I didn't need to brush them, and when I passed my hands through them they bounced back into place. I couldn't feel one knot. What was even stranger, than my sudden acknowledgment of my own beauty, was that I didn't feel the need to go to the bathroom. I would normally rush to toilet in the morning, but there was nothing!

I walked out of the bathroom and Rin handed me my ballerina shoes. I slipped them on. Haku was livelier than before. He smiled and took my hand.

"We are going to see Yubaba." He said as he led me to the door. He opened it for me for and together we walked down a long, dark and narrow hall. He opened another wide golden door and we walked into Yubaba's office. She was sitting in her arm chair, Boh was on the floor playing and Zeniba was talking to her sister on the other side of the desk. I saw Boh lift his head and sniff the air. He turned around and gave me a puzzled look. He stared at his mother expecting answers, but got none. Both sisters turned and looked at us. Their faces were void of any astonishment.

I looked outside; the fields were already engorged with water. There went my chances of going to tell my parents that I was okay. Daddy had probably already started freaking out by now. Oh! Mom probably called in a search party! They were never going to find me! Oh Mommy… Oh Daddy… I felt guilt wash over me and fill me up with sadness. I wondered if I would ever be able to see them again, especially now that I "mated" with a spirit, whatever that meant. Boh crawled towards Haku and I and he smelled us with narrowed eyes.

He tilted his head slightly to the side. He reminded me of a confused little puppy. I shrugged. To be honest, I was expecting Granny to explain everything to me.

"So, when did you cast the spell?" Zeniba asked Haku in a very sarcastic tone.

I felt Kohaku stiffen next to me. I tightened my grip around his hand.

"There was no spell." I answered, "We just slept, and then Rin said my sent changed."

I didn't want to tell them that my appearance had also improved.

"We are aware of that already." Yubaba said cutting me off.

"Oh—" was all I thought of replying.

"There must be a mistake." Haku told them sourly. "This union is impossible."

"We cannot be sure of that Kohaku. How can something that has never occurred be impossible? No you see; it is remarkable, but not impossible." Zeniba replied.

"But what is this mating… I've been told it's like being married only for eternity." I interjected.

Zeniba smiled at me, "yes and no, it's the union—merger, if you will, of two souls together. Their magic, their abilities, their senses will all become one."

I turned to look at Kohaku. He was uncomfortable.

"And what is it going to do to me?" I asked.

"Well from the smell of it the bonding as started last night, but what triggered it—that is what we have to discover, but you have nothing to worry about dear. The mating process will not harm you." Yubaba answered.

"Then how do you undo it?" I said quickly, mostly without thinking.

"What is done cannot be undone, child. No, the bond will only grow stronger… and just like a marriage it cannot be complete without consummation." Zeniba told me laughing happily.

"Sex! We have to have sex!" I growled. I wasn't totally against the idea, but it had caught me by surprise.

"It's alright Chihiro; no one will force you to do anything." Haku said to me, but the hurt in his voice was clear as crystal. He probably thought that I didn't want to be his mate, but the truth was… I enjoyed being human. I didn't want to be the hybrid bride of a dragon… especially when I still had to finish college. Not that I didn't want to be with Haku. I did… it was just too much to take in.

"This is a good thing," Yubaba chanted laughing on her desk. She was talking mostly to herself. "If Chihiro and Haku had not mated than it would have been impossible for Chihiro to complete the spell to destroy the darkness. She had no magic, this way she will be able to use Haku's… this is a sign from fate!"

I shook my head, "I've never agreed to be turned to stone!"

My harsh tone had caught everyone by surprise, even me. I looked down ashamed by my sudden outburst. So what—I was destined to come back to the Spirit World marry a dragon, steal his magic, then turn myself to stone to imprison the evil souls of humans and use my body as a prison for the rest of eternity. Wow—that almost didn't sound weird. Yubaba looked at me and smiled.

"She already is starting to feel some of Haku's emotions." She told her sister with such a strange proud tone in her voice, it made me become confused.

I just said that I did not agree and yet she was happy. I groaned and covered my face with my hands, thus letting go of Haku's. Stupid goddamn magic. I thought of my classes at university. Geez—if I spent too much time here in the Spirit World I would probably flunk this semester, not to mention that I had two witches who wanted me to become a living prison. That is really something that could put me in a deep funk. I massaged my temple and looked at them with angry eyes. Then I crossed my arms and stared them down. Zeniba smiled and nodded at Yubaba silently.

Something strange happened; all the flames, burning on the candles, stopped burning instantly. Instinctively, I would have thought that it would have been one of the spirits in the room, but they all looked at me with sheepish faces. I turned to Haku, he was once again void of all emotions… typical. The more they looked at me the angrier I got. The angrier I got the more there were strange occurrences. Papers were flying in the air, and Yubaba's expensive lamps were hurling themselves out of the window. The fire in the fireplace was completely extinguished. The only reminisce of the fire was the smoldering hot ash in the right corner.

The lights flickered on and off. Boh moved closer to his mother out of fear, but both witches were smiling brightly and proudly.

"I will not Fucking be used." I snarled dangerously.

I felt a pair of arms grab my shoulders gently, and for some reason I calmed down.

"Your plan won't work, neither of us will ever agree to this." The voice behind me boomed.

Zeniba sighed, "Haku, you need to control your emotions. We all love Chihiro. No one is comfortable with this plan, but the darkness—"

"The Darkness will never leave!" Haku told her. He moved his body closer to mine and held me tightly next to him. "As long as humans will exist, and they always will, there will always be darkness. You both know that they were born free and can do whatever they wish. They can be pure or evil. That is their choice. We have sent thousands of spirits over the years to contain this plague… it keeps coming back! I will not let you use Chihiro as a sacrificial lamb!"

"Thousands…" I breathed silently as I thought of all the others. Then I realized just how present those spirits were… I remembered when I walked in the green fields—there were hundreds of statues all different. Some were crouching, some were broken, and some just stood there with water flowing out of their mouths. They were all Spirits who had sacrificed themselves for the Spirit World. Even that frog on the top of the stairs, probably was spirit too. Here I thought they were just props. I wanted to cry. I never imagined just how many had tried to protect their loved ones.

Here I was spitting on all their hard work… and on their sacrifice.

"I don't want to turn to stone, but I don't want to nobody to suffer anymore. Is there another way?"

Zeniba got up and walked towards me. She placed her hand under my chin and I looked at her. I could feel my eyes getting watery. She smiled and caressed my cheek.

"If Yubaba and I can find another way, and trust us we will. We will do our best so that nothing bad happens to you." She told me sweetly.

"Haku why don't you go take a walk with Chihiro. I think some fresh air will do her some good." Yubaba said as she waved her hand to clean her office. Boh looked at her hopefully, but she shook her head. "No young man. You have magic classes with your Aunty Zeniba."

* * *

**Please review**! I won't keep writing if you don't.

All my love

Leovanna


	6. Chapter 6

**Thank you for the reviews they were very sweet. I'll try updating as much as I can.**

* * *

Chapter Six

I Had a Dream

* * *

Haku took my hand again and I followed him out of Yubaba's office. He stomped his way back to his room and I trailed behind him not making a sound. He slammed the door open. Rin wasn't in the room anymore.

"Argh!" Kohaku growled as he slammed his fists into the wall. I flinched and looked away. I was a little angry too, but I wasn't going to destroy an innocent wall.

"Calm down." I muttered under my breath. "You have no reason to freak out."

He turned his head towards me, and I was shocked when I saw the pained look on his face. His eyes were narrowed and they were icy cold. His lips were shut tight, and his hands were pressed firmly on his forehead. I shook my head and moved towards him. I heard him whimper when I put my hand on his shoulder. He lowered his hands and took a second to catch his breath.

"I destroyed your life." He whispered to me. He took a deep breath to contain his self-directed anger.

I blinked, well I wasn't going to contradict him… my human life pretty much went down the drain, and now I was destined to destroy an entity that was superior to me in strength and in numbers. So—I sighed. I wasn't completely unhappy with my situation. I was with the man of my dreams—well dragon of my dreams, and I got to see all my old friends.

I felt my heart beating too fast, as though it would burst out of my chest. Was I that anxious?

"You didn't destroy it, circumstance did." I told him as sweetly as I could. "I mean mom and dad probably think I'm dead. Even if I do make it back, then I would probably have to start my semester at school all over, not to mention I am probably going to have to try out again to make the cheerleading team."

I sighed when I thought of Cho… I was lead cheerleader. I bet she would be thrilled to take my place, but then again she was still my friend. I let go of Kohaku's shoulder and moved towards his balcony. I opened the door and let the fresh air hit my face gently. I stepped outside and looked at the horizon. It was sunny outside and there was a clear cloudless sky.

"You miss your parents don't you?" Haku said stepping outside.

"What gave me away?" I asked him sarcastically.

He sighed and wrapped one arm around me. "I can take you to see them."

I leaned against his chest and wondered if it was a good idea. What would I tell them? 'Hey mom! Hey dad! Don't worry about me I'm alive, but I have to go back to the spirit world to destroy something called "the darkness".' Oh, yeah! They were not going to let me leave. But the idea of seeing them was so mouth-watering, so tempting, so enticing that I could not say no. Mom would probably start crying when she would see me, and dad would never let me go. I was their only child—I winced at the thought of them thinking that they might lose me for ever.

I wanted to see them, tell them that I was fine, even if only for the moment. I looked up at Kohaku and he understood everything when our eyes met.

"You want to see them." He said as his embrace became more loving.

I nodded and I felt my eyes getting watery. He kissed the top of my head.

"We can go you know." He said as he spun me around.

"I would like that." I answered silently. "But how?"

"You are still linked to the human world, and I can travel in both worlds now that my river is flowing again. You could actually go see them as much as you want, but we have to be back before sundown."

I felt a tear of happiness roll slowly down my cheek. He wiped it with his left hand. I looked up at him and I could see his green eyes sparkling. My head moved forwards and I closed my eyes. I could feel his breath tickle my lips. A slow warmth moved inside of me and took over my body. I felt my own breath stagger awkwardly as I waited for his lips to meet mine, but when they did I was swollen with joy. His lips brushed mine so gently, and with such care that it was as though he thought that I would break into pieces under the impact of a fiery kiss. His hands moved softly down to my waist and I moved closer to him. I wrapped my arms around his neck and forced my own lips onto his.

There was nothing erotic about the kiss. There was no desire to make it sexual in any way. There was no pressure, no fear, no apprehension; there was only love and it was true, good, and wonderfully blissful. It made me dream, it made me hope, it made unafraid. I could face any foe. I could feel fireworks exploding inside me and soft thunder roaring in my mind. He moved one hand up on my back and moved me closer to him. Our bodies were pressing against one another. I felt my mind become mush. It was as though I was floating on a cotton candy cloud. I was defying gravity.

When we broke the kiss, I had to take a moment to catch my breath. I opened my eyes and admired the man in front of me. I loved the way he held me in his arms.

He pressed his forehead against mine and smiled. For the first time, since I had arrived in the spirit world, I saw Haku be truly happy. There was no guilt, no pain, no sorrow, nothing that could put a damper this moment.

"I want you to be happy Chihiro." He said tenderly. He let go of me and moved backwards.

He transformed into his dragon self. I blinked and he moved his head back as if he was saying, 'come on get on.'

I hesitated for a brief second before I climbed on.

The second I was safely on him, he shot forwards and flew off into the sky. He flew so quickly. I moved some of my hair off my face and tucked them behind my ear. I could see the train station moving closer towards us. Haku flew through the doors and then into the tunnel.

When we reached the human world Haku soared towards the sky and I noticed my blue house and my green lawn. I pointed it to him and he transformed back into a man and we descended towards my home. I noticed that they had found my car. I came to that conclusion, since it was parked in the driveway. I wondered how they got it home. I had forgotten that my keys were in my backpack. I walked towards the door and checked if it was unlocked. It was.

I walked into the foyer. I leaned forwards and looked into the living room. There was no one. I walked into the dining room, then I moved into the kitchen, still no one. I checked downstairs, until I heard silent tiptoeing upstairs. I walked back up the stairs and came face to face with my mom and dad.

They had large puffy eyes with dark purple circles underneath them. My mother's hair was messy and tangled. It looked like a poorly kept rat's nest. Dad hadn't shaved and he seemed to have lost too much weight for his own good.

My mother's eyes grew four sizes when she saw me. Her arms quickly embraced me and she was not going to let me go.

"Oh my little Chihiro!" She cried on my shoulder. "I thought I lost you."

My dad was speechless, his eyes veiled up with fresh tears and he joined our embrace.

"We looked everywhere!" He told me sobbing.

"I missed you guys." I tried to contain my own tears.

I detached myself from them and swallowed all the pain down. I didn't want to worry them. "Mommy, daddy—I can't stay."

"Is it because of him?" My father rumbled. He gestured Haku who had followed me everywhere in the house like a silent shadow. My mother stiffened.

"Chichi… you know that you don't have to go with him. You can tell mommy if something is wrong." My mother said. "If their keeping you captive." It was barely above a whisper.

"Is it money you want!" My father asked. His voice was hard and relentless. "I have money. You can have everything! Just give us back our little girl."

"Dad it's not like that." I turned to Haku, "can't I tell them the truth? They need to know."

"You eloped didn't you?" Mom gulped. "You got yourself pregnant—sweetie that's not a reason to—."

"I'm not pregnant. Can we go sit in the living room?" I said to them calmly. She wasn't that far off about the eloping part.

They nodded, but didn't move.

I did, I sat down on the couch and Haku followed me diligently. Only to make sure that I was safe my parents followed.

"You guys remember when I was ten; I told you a story that was very farfetched and you didn't believe me. You see the spirit world exists. This is the boy that I helped, Kohaku. I don't know why, but I have to go back and help my friends again. I love you guys and I hate the fact that I'm not going to be able to see you as much anymore. I want you guys to know that I'll be safe. Haku won't let anything bad happen to me. Also… I'm technically married to him."

"Wha—" Dad's face was frozen in a total state of shock.

Mom kept shaking her head. I think she also pinched herself to make sure she wasn't dreaming.

"Well I don't really know how to explain it—you see—Haku why don't you tell them." I balled my hands up. I could feel just how clammy they had gotten.

He looked at my mom and dad with his beautiful green eyes, and they magically calmed down.

'First time I see magic actually doing some good' I thought sarcastically to myself.

Haku let out a faint chuckle, but continued staring nonetheless.

"In our world," he started, "there is something called mating. I am very sorry to inform you that your daughter is exceptional… I can understand just how hard it can be for human parents, but Chihiro is my mate, and nothing—even if she would want to change it—can stop the mating process once it has started."

My dad eyes were fixated on me, on his little girl, on his princess, on his world. I could see that he was wrestling with his own conscience. What was he going to do? Stop me? Would he defy fate? Where would he hide me to make sure that no spirit could ever find me?

"I remember when you were this big…" He said as he showed us the length that I had. His gaze was still fixated on me. "You were so spoiled—I always wanted to spoil you, but I knew… I knew that you were special—that I would lose you some day. That was my dream—that you would never grow up…that you would always be my little girl."

My mother was sniffling silently next to him. His words touched me, but they were not hurtful. I understood what I had to do—I didn't want to, but I had to.

A tear rolled down my cheek.

"I love you dad." I managed to choke out.

"Dido, baby girl." He said smiling as he caressed my mother's back.

We stayed in silently contemplation, my mother moved closer to me and I spent the afternoon in her arms. I didn't want to grow up—I wanted to be their little girl again and not have to deal with other people's problems. I knew that I would get to see them again, but I knew that I had said goodbye to my childhood. This was closure. I was telling them goodbye.

That's probably why, when the sun set and we had to leave, I didn't look back.

I was leaving them behind, for now, so that I could give everyone else a better life.

'Bye mom, bye dad, goodbye carelessness.' I thought as I leaned on Haku's back.

We glided back to the Spirit World slowly. I knew that he understood that I wouldn't want to come back. It would hurt too much.

* * *

**Don't forget to review! I love Reviews! I live for Reviews!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Thank you! Thank you! Thank you for all the wonderful reviews. It's really thanks to them that I keep writing. So the more I get reviews, the more I write.**

**Gael: Please don't kill me**

**For-Queen-Good: yes the Lemons are on their way.**

**Ichikawa Hikaru: Thanks you, and like I said before the lemons are on their way so keep on reading and reviewing.**

**Chihiro0Haku0lover: I hope you will like this chapter. I tried not to make it too sad. Thank you, it keeps getting better because I keep getting awesome reviews :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Spirited Away**

* * *

Chapter Seven

I wish

* * *

(_Lemons_)

* * *

Haku stopped when we reached the Spirit World. He lowered us down to a platform. Water surrounded us, but the sound of it had a soothing effect on my mind. The waves slowly and gently crashed onto the platform. I could still see the green grass underneath the pristine liquid. There were a few moss covered statues underneath the water. They were a reminder of the plague that was causing quite a pandemic in this strange world. I could smell the dampness in the air around us. It was chilly and I couldn't help but shiver a little bit. Haku sifted back to his human form and wrapped his arms around me. His attempt to keep me warm was sweet, but futile. The air itself was rather warm… the chilliness existed only in my mind. Those statues foreshadowed my own fate and Haku's as well.

I could feel Kohaku's breath tickling the back of my neck. His hands moved slowly forwards and rested on my stomach. They stayed there and kept my body close to his. I thought of mom and dad. I sighed and leaned into Haku's embrace. What was I going to do? His lips brushed my ear and I shivered, but this time out of desire and not fear. I laid my hand on top of his and I laced my other arms around his neck. I turned my head slightly too look at him. His eyes were sparkling. I leaned in and kissed him. It was only a peck, but when our lips made contact I felt something strange started growing inside of me; an emotion that I couldn't quite pinpoint.

It was halfway between desire and sadness. I guess I could have called it longing, but it was more than that. I couldn't say that I was craving something, because all of my heart's desires were sated. However, I needed more. When I broke the kiss and looked at Haku I saw that something had also changed in his demeanor. His eyes were filled with lust. His lips were shut tight. His body was rigid, and apart from the upwards and downwards movement of his chest, he was unmoving. I turned around so I could face him. I bit down on my lower lip and looked at him with the same lust filled eyes. I grabbed his muscled arm and forced him to come closer to me.

I moved quickly. I was surprised by my own sharp movements. I flung myself onto him and crushed my lips on his. Shocked by my outburst he fell back on the cold floor of the platform. I stayed on top of him, forcing myself on him—oh dear, I sounded like a rapist—but he didn't seem to mind. His lips were soft and tasted surprisingly sweet. I bit on his lower lip softly and he pressed on my back, thus forcing me to lay down completely on top him. I felt his tongue lick my lips. It was seeking an entrance that was forbidden to so many others, yet fully opened for him. I gladly allowed it to enter and meet my own tongue. I couldn't help but moan as we kissed.

He grabbed my wrist and, without any effort, he pinned me underneath him. He kissed my jawline and ravaged my neck with kisses. He moved down to my chest and cupped my breast with his left hand. I arched my back and moaned once more. I could feel his pelvis against my waist. I blinked when I realized just how big his throbbing erection was, but instead of repulsing me I was turned on. I felt soft warm moisture dripping down on my thigh.

My hands went underneath his shirt and caressed his chest. He lifted my shirt and unsnapped by bra. Haku's eyes darkened and, just like how the water had engulfed the plains, pure unaltered desire engulfed his mind. He tore my bra into pieces, a gesture I soon after regretted since I only had two left. He lowered his lips down to my right nipple and licked his with the tip of his tongue. This movement caused a relentless surge of pleasure to explode deep inside of me. I held my breath trying to imagine a greater pleasure than this one, but I couldn't find one.

Haku groaned and gently bit down on it. At that moment my mind went completely blank, but unfortunately for yours truly a wave that was higher than the others crashed onto the platform and brought us back to reality.

We were both dripping and panting. I looked into his eyes and our new found desire was just as present as before.

He kissed me once more.

"Not here." He said softly as he continued kissing my neck.

I couldn't answer; I just kept whimpering beneath him. I wanted to finish what we started now.

I felt him smirk against my shoulder. "What's the hurry Chihiro? Don't you prefer a nice cozy bed?"

I honestly couldn't talk. My mind was completely numb. I didn't even understand what he was saying. I moaned and moved underneath him, but not one coherent word came out of my mouth. I had never felt this alive. It felt so right. I didn't want a bed! I wanted him to take me right here on the platform. He lowered my shirt and gave me one last peck before getting up. I looked at him from the ground. I was still dizzy and confused from what had happened. Not to mention that I didn't want it to end.

He held out his hand to help me up. I blinked at took it with a certain type unease. Were we really going to continue what we had started?

He grinned when I got up and regained a little bit of composure.

"Why are you smiling?" I asked shyly.

He moved closer to me. I wanted to jump into his arms, but I feared that I wouldn't control myself if I did. He tucked as strand of my wet tangled hair behind my ear and giggled before answering my question.

"Because Chihiro I've never been this happy in all my life and I've never felt this 'exited' before." He told me. I believed him, his eyes were screaming desire.

I blushed nonetheless.

"Come now." He held out his hand and together we soared into the sky.

* * *

(_End Lemons_)

* * *

The voyage back to the bathhouse was a short one. Perhaps Einstein's theory of relativity was true. A day, or an hour, or even a trip back to the bathhouse with Haku was not enough time to appreciate him fully. Time passed by too quickly. I felt risky and enticing when I was in his embrace. He was everything I needed. Being with him just made sense. I wasn't going to slack off, or even back off… the most important thing now was finding a way to beat The Darkness and live my happily ever after.

I wasn't going to give up. I didn't give up last time I was here and I'm 99% sure that this time also love will be the answer to all our problems.

We reached the bridge of the Bath House. There were a few greeters.

"Welcome Master Kohaku, Mistress Chihiro!" They said in unison when we passed by them. I could hear them giggling in the background, for some reason it wasn't the type of laughter that made me comfortable. We entered the Bath House and I relaxed when I started hearing the melodious brouhaha of the workers and clients.

An employee came running towards us. It was a small green frog. I think it was the same one that No Face ate last time I was here.

"Master Kohaku! Master Kohaku! Yubaba had to leave! She said that you were in charge during her absence. She left with Zeniba and Boh."

Haku narrowed his eyes. There went my hope of continuing what we started on the platform.

"Did she tell you why she left?" Haku questioned him.

The frog shook his head, but raised his forefinger as if to tell us, 'one moment'. He took out a folded piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to Haku. Kohaku read the letter. I tried to read over his shoulder, but I could only see a blank page.

'God Damned Magic.' I thought angrily.

Haku took my hand, and walked towards the elevators. He remained silent during the entire trip to Yubaba's office.

Kamajii was up in the office. He rubbed his mustache when he saw us come in.

"How is he?" Haku said as soon as we walked in.

"Pretty bad shape—I don't think that he can keep on eating those things. Their poisoning him." Kamajii answered softly.

Haku tensed up, "Who sacrificed themselves this time?"

They were talking about The Darkness. I felt my heart tightened at the thought of someone turning to stone.

"A few slug spirits." He replied.

"What are you talking about?" I asked raising my voice slightly.

"I told you that No Face was protecting the Spirit World… well to put it in simple terms, we are using him as a giant trash bag, but sometimes he gets full and we have to empty him. So a few Spirits sacrifice themselves and turn to stone so that we can keep on living normal lives—"

"But if this keeps up we'll all be turned to stone before The Darkness is vanquished." Kamajii finished. He looked at me with a speculating stare.

"Don't even think about that old man. I'd rather see the entire Spirit World turned to stone, than see her in that position."

"No I that was not what was on my mind." If voice seemed to drift off. "It just seems odd that you've mated with Chihiro. Maybe she is and isn't the answer at the same time."

"Wha?" I said slightly confused.

Kamajii shook his head and scratched his scalp.

"Oh don't mind me! I'm just an old fool!" He started laughing. "I should return to my boiler room, that is where I belong after all!"

He walked out leaving Haku and I in a state of utter shock and misunderstanding. I then remembered the cozy bed that I was promised and I forgot all about The Darkness, Yubaba, Zeniba and Kamajii. I raised my eye and moved closer to Haku. I felt him shiver when my body touched his.

"Did you not say that there was a cozy bed here." I hoped that he would understand the meaning of my words.

His eyes lit back up. He quickly picked me up bridal style and moved with abnormal speed towards his bedroom.

I couldn't help but smile when we picked up where we left off. I love the fireworks and the thunder that roared inside my mind when we kissed. Within a few second my shirt was on the floor and so was his.

* * *

**I hope that you all enjoyed the Lemons! Now I want Reviews! I really like writing this story, and I can't wait to get to start writing the rest of it, but for that you all have to send me plenty of Reviews or I'll just get bored and stop XD**

**All my Love**

**Leovanna**


	8. Chapter 8

Thanks for all the lovely reviews I just now received the amount that I found satisfactory. So here is the new chapter with all the lovely lemons, and I hope you will all enjoy. When I say I want reviews I want them or I'll keep the fanfic hostage.

Disclaimer: I do not own spirited away, if I did there would be 18 sequels and 6 prequels.

* * *

**Chapter 8**

**Complete and Complex**

* * *

(Lemons skip if you're not comfortable with them)

* * *

I turned in the bed to look at Kohaku. I smiled and he looked at me lustfully. He kissed me passionately and forced me on top of him. He caressed my curves and admired my body. He glared my bra and I smirked.

"You want me to undo it?" I asked softly. His unashamed eyes told me that he didn't just want me to undo it; he wanted to destroy it. "Don't, I only have three."

He raised an eyebrow as though to say, 'who cares?'

I shook my head and bent down to kiss him. As I was kissing him, I quickly unhooked my bra and he slid it off quickly. He threw it towards the window. I don't know if he threw it with enough force for it to land out of the window. I didn't care. His lips had captivated me. His hands were roaming my body; exploring every part that he had never touched before. I shivered as he touched my breast. He raised his eyebrow and kissed me quickly before dipping back down and kissing the tip of my nipples. I moaned.

He picked me up and got on top.

I could help but blush as he eyed me. Temptation… and his velvet eyes were full of them. His stare was mind-numbing. His kisses, his presence, his eyes—his throbbing erection against my waist…how did I manage to still be able to think? I moaned as he ravaged my neck with his lips. One of his hands made its way towards my pants and with one quick movement they were off and neatly folded by the dresser. He caressed my thigh and I became stranded, unable to move underneath him. I was paralyzed by pleasure. I felt new to this—completely powerless and yet… my mind went blank again a he caressed my breast.

I arched my back, so that I would be able to feel more, I moaned as I felt his penis move closer to my entrance. They were only separated by my thin and wet panties, and his pants. I wished that both items weren't there. I moved my hands (I was surprised to see that they still worked) towards his pants. I tried to undo them, but the lacing was too intricate and complex for me to manage to achieve that task.

"You really didn't want anyone to rape you." I told him mockingly as I kissed him.

He grinned and rendered me speechless by moving lower and passing his hand over my wet panties. The pressure of his fingers against me was exciting and just has he had with my pants… Houdini made my undies disappear. He moved lower and lower kissing my breast, ribcage, and stomach on his way to his prize.

He reached me; he kissed me in a place that I had never expected to be kissed. (I wasn't a totally clueless, but the pleasure was new to me.) Who did he ever manage to learn how to lick and kiss that way. Oh! Lord! I couldn't stop moaning. He had reached my clit was now toying with me. The pleasure was unbearable. I could feel my toes open and become star-shaped, I would lift my pelvis and my body would rock and convulse. By now my moans had transformed into full-fledged screams and howls of passion. I could feel him smiling against me. I could tell how smug he was, how close he was to…

"OH GOD!" My body dropped completely. I couldn't move, even less than before anyhow.

He didn't stop there. He wiped his mouth and face dry before moving back up and kissing me.

When had he found the time to undo his pants, I would never know, but with one quick trust he moved inside of me; I braced myself waiting for the pain that Cho had described, but there was nothing—no pain. There was just mind blowing pleasure as Kohaku's penis moved inside of me.

I had watched many episodes of True Blood, and I often wondered how those women could take on a being so big and let it move so quickly inside of them…but now I just wanted Haku to move faster and faster. Something inside me was changing, I could feel it. I grabbed him by the shoulders and got on top. I started ridding him. Pleasure—power, more pleasure. He was grunting beneath me and calling out my name. I looked down at him and when our eyes connected a bigger desire filled me up, there was, for a second, an eerie silence before the climax and then—

"Chihiro!"

"Haku!"

We came and a beam of white light moved from our united bodies and spread across the room—across the entire bath house.

I collapsed on top of him and fell asleep on his chest.

* * *

(End of Lemons it is now safe to read it again.)

* * *

In the morning I was awakened by croaking. At first I thought it was Cho's rotten alarm clock.

I raised my hand and muttered "Shut it."

My response was a groaning sound. I opened one lazy eye to see Toads mouth zipped shut. Haku underneath me awakened too.

'Jeez... poor thing what happened?' I thought naively.

'You forced him to stay quiet.' Haku laughed in my mind.

I jumped out caught by surprise by this new intruder inside my mind.

"The FUCK!" I said grabbing the sheets and covering myself.

Kohaku looked at me puzzled. A wave of guilt and calm washed through me.

'Are you unhappy?' I heard the new voice ask me.

I tried to think, but I could see into his mind and my own was becoming more and more blurry. It was an amalgam of both minds, both perspectives. I could clearly see us—but it was harder to see Me.

His face changed from puzzled to sad in an instant.

"You do not like the bond?" He asked out loud. His out loud voice was far less noticeable than his new inside voice.

Did I like the bond, part of me did, but then again maybe that was him. What did I think—where was I. I was happy? No, I was guilty—no that wasn't it, I was confused… damn. Where was I? What were my emotions? Which thoughts were my own? Why did Haku look at me that way? Why was that stupid toad still here?

'Do you want me to tell him to leave?' He asked me patiently.

"How do you do that?" I asked quickly as he ended his mental sentence.

He blinked.

"How do you know which thoughts are mine and which are yours?" I asked… I was getting irritated of always asking questions.

"Just calm down Chihiro." He said moving closer to me. He leaned closer and cupped my cheek with his hand. When we touched I felt a thousand tingling spiders crawling under my skin. It was like I had an extreme adrenaline push and yet I was calmer and more at peace. I wanted to lean in more and kiss his lips. There was a growing desire that kept burning deep within me.

There was a half croaking, half muffled coughing noise next to us. I turned to look at Toad who hadn't moved from where he was. I blushed slightly embarrassed by my sudden outburst, but mostly because I was remembering that he was here and that I was about to jump on Kohaku and do everything that I did to him last night again and again. I could feel Haku in my mind; he was almost whimpering because he knew what he was losing. Haku looked away from me and stared out of the window.

There was suddenly a gap in my mind, a deep void, a scary darkness. Something was abruptly missing. I felt alone and vulnerable. I was about to burst into tears because it was so unbearable. I turned to Haku. I looked into his green tortured eyes and the veil of darkness was lifted. I was relieved for some reason.

That's when I realised that Haku could separate our minds. He could control his mind. He knew which thoughts were his own and which were mine.

"Don't ever do that to me again." I told him angrily. The darkness and void were far worse than having both our mind connected, and now I was starting to realise where my thoughts were. I was thinking wasn't I? I took this chance. "Send Toad away."

Toad understood and although his lips were still sealed shut he walked away.

"What is happening?" Again a question.

"We've completely mated Chihiro." He looked at me apprehensively, he was expecting me to blow… probably seeing a part of my mind that I hadn't reached yet.

"And that entitles you to invade my mind." I blurted out.

He sighed, but nodded, "it also entitles you to mine." He added softly.

I moved closer to him and leaned on his chest and the thousand spiders appeared again.

"Explain it to me."

"Mating is—it's being one. Everything that I possess; my body, my powers, my memories, my thoughts and my desires they all belong to you as much as they belong to me."

"Your memories?"

He nodded.

"So I could just rummage your mind and then 'poof' I can see what you ate the past Fourth of July."

He narrowed his eyes trying to comprehend why I would bother to know that, but he shrugged and simply replied, "if you wish."

"Then…" I placed my hands on each side of his face and concentrated. I moved into his mind looking for one memory in particular. I felt him resist. He was trying to block me. He was fighting against me. I knew he wouldn't want me to know, but I had to. It was my right to know.

When I found what I was looking for I gasped. It was far more horrid and gruesome than I expected. What had I expected—sunshine and daisies… Haku closed his eyes trying to shield himself from the memory, but neither of us could stop remembering.

Yubaba was standing along with Boh and Zeniba on a green pasture. Kohaku was behind them with his arms crossed. There was a mountain of mutilated bodies moving towards them. Some were bound together by the hips, others moving on top of their fellow comrades and they were trying to eat them, ripping away ears and noses. I wanted to gag when I saw a putrid creature rip the head of another and swallow it down whole. Two more heads grew instead of one, each of them trying to eat the other.

Over them were hovering screaming bloody banshee-like creatures, male on one side and female on the other. They hovered and moved closer to one another until almost at touching distance before being repulsed like magnets each to their own side and they began wailing again. Others were crawling on the floor as they wore monk like suits made of pure gold. They moved like snakes and their busted veins turned their skin red and make it look like red scales. Other had their heads twisted at 180 degrees; they were crawling on all floors and looking up at the sky.

I tried to look away from the putridity that was painted before me, but because it was Haku's memory I could not.

"Are you ready No Face?" Zeniba asked.

"Hu-hu!" I heard No Face agreeing behind Haku.

He moved quickly in front of everyone and opened his mouth wide.

Zeniba, Yubaba and Boh opened their fans and started a strange dance as "the Darkness" moved into No Face's mouth.

A slug spirit moved to No Face's right when the last spirit walked into the trap.

The slug spirit started to glow a bright purple light.

"Now!" Haku screamed and No Face regurgitated everything that he swallowed. It was all transferred into the slug spirit.

The light started to fade. He turned and smiled at Haku before turning to stone.

That's when he flinched, that was when I found the courage to stop looking at that particular memory.

"That's the Darkness!" I screamed covering myself with the sheet. "It's hell!"

"I didn't want you to see that—the Darkness, is the name that we gave to those monsters. We could have called them the damned, some spirits do, but they bring darkness and destruction with them… the name stuck."

"It's as though they were taken out of a page of Dante's Inferno." I said shivering out of fear.

Kohaku's eyes looked at me curiously, "How do you know that name?"

"He's an Italian poet from the 1300th, he wrote the Divine Comedy." I answered.

"There was once a man who came here, he managed to achieve what he wanted and control the Darkness."

"You're Shitting me!" I said disbelievingly.

Haku shook his head. "That's why Yubaba thinks you're the key, once a human came and he controlled the Darkness. You are by far more pure and now you are now a human endowed with magic. You're special Chihiro." He kissed me softly and sent waves of calm and love into my mind, but it didn't work. I was far too scared to even pay attention to his love. He turned his head hurt by my reaction and anger.

"Why am I special? Why do I have to face The Darkness? Why can't I just be normal?" I asked.

Haku turned around, "Because Chihiro you were never normal." He leaned in and kissed me once more.

That managed to calm me down a little.

"I won't let them turn you to stone. I'll die before that day comes." He promised solemnly as he looked into my eyes.

There was a knock on the door and a muffled cough. I thought of poor Toad and how I had zipped his mouth shut. Haku laughed at my new random thought. I had to undo the spell and apologize to the poor creature.

* * *

Review or I'll keep all of you waiting. Trust me I'll do it.


	9. Chapter 9

Big thanks to everyone who took the time to review, I give you all virtual hugs and kisses.

* * *

Chapter Nine

Training

* * *

Kohaku and Zeniba thought me how to control my newfound magic. It was slightly easier than I would have expected. My first lesson was how to undo a spell, poor Toad waited diligently has I tried to harness the "magic" within me. Zeniba was a wonderful and patient teacher and Boh was an outstanding tutor.

Yubaba and Kohaku slowly analysed my progress. A lot of my time was spent studying ways to destroy this "Darkness" without my own future being compromised. Kohaku repeatedly kept reminding everyone that has long has there were humans there would be darkness. One day, as I was rummaging in Haku's office, I fell upon a book that shouldn't have belonged in the spirit realm, a book of no particular interest for average humans, but I was no average human. It was the _Theogony and Works and Day_ by Hesiod. I opened it and fell unto a particular passage.

_First came Chasm*; and then broad-breasted Gaia*, secure seat for ever of all immortals who occupy the peak of snowy Olympus; the misty Tartara* in a remote recess of the broad-pathed earth; and Eros* the most handsome among the immortal gods, dissolver of flesh who overcomes the reason and purpose in the breast of all gods and all men._

_Out of the chasm came Erebos and Dark Night* and from Night in turn came Bright Air and Day*. Whom she bore in shared intimacy with Erebos. Gaia bore first of all one equal to herself, starry Uranus*, so that he should cover her all about, to be a secure seat for ever for the blessed gods—_

I stopped reading when I felt Kohaku's soft hands caress the back of my neck. I turned my head towards him as I laid the book down on the bookshelf. I was studying English and Theology in university mostly due to my encounter with Kohaku when I was ten. I had never realized until now just how many mythologies and religions were close to truly understanding how the spirit world worked. The ancient Greeks believed in many gods and goddesses whom had particular elements or duties attributed to them, as did the Romans. There was Shintoism whish interested me the most, and even many aboriginal religions gave spirits to objects and the flora around them.

I didn't believe in one religion, but I could see the value in all of them.

"You should stop thinking about that." Haku told me silently as he kissed me passionately.

I pushed him away; fighting against my own irrepressible desires. "I need to study." I reminded him.

He raised his eyebrow and grinned as he shook his head. "The less you know the better it is for me."

I laughed knowing all about his aversion to me having the ability to control magic. "You know even if I don't study I can just go and rummage through your brain."

He moved a step closer towards me, his eyes full of desire… this was another "advantage" to mating. There was not a surface in Haku's bedchambers we hadn't consummated our union on. I smiled at him, but my thoughts were still all about this book that I found here in the spirit world. I turned to ask him my question, but he answered it before me even asking and without talking he showed me how certain human objects could make their way into the spirit world. It was an interesting process. Normal "object-spirits" could not interfere with human activity, but somehow, sometimes, an "object-spirit" could encounter human material.

When a certain item lies for a long time, unwatched and untended, a spirit could start possessing it and actually transfer the lost item into the spirit world. So some books, appliances and vehicles could actually belong to a spirit. The more land or power a spirit possesses the more chances where that he possessed human objects also. Of course, said spirit would also possess an extensive knowledge of humans themselves. Kohaku, Yubaba, Zeniba were all powerful spirits and therefore possessed this knowledge of humans, and unfortunately knowledge of the "Darkness" also.

In the time that I spent here there had been two sacrifices made; the first one on the first night of the consummation of Kohaku's and my mating, and the second just a few nights ago. Haku decided that he didn't want to go and participate in the ritual. Due to our new connection he didn't want me to see what he saw. He was trying, to the best of his extent, to not make me worry. The fact of the matter was that we're mates and whatever knowledge and power we had we shared. Haku was no longer only linked to the human world through his river, but he was now as free to walk in it has I was. He had taken that opportunity to go back to my home, reassure my parents of my safety and grab some more clothes for me. He had destroyed all my undergarments and I was in dire need of new ones.

I also reminded him to grab me some toothpaste. Even though I had magic, morning breath was still present and on cue every morning.

Not that Kohaku minded or commented about it. I was still human after all. I also asked him to bring me medicine like Gravols. The constant use of magic was draining and then I would throw up every morning. I was unable to eat anything afterwards.

'Stop with all the thinking.' Haku said seductively.

In one swift movement, he grabbed me and pushed me up against the wall. I could feel sensuality emanating from his body. He started kissing me savagely, hungrier than ever before. I could see what had aroused him. He was looking at me all pensive, a lock of hair was dangling seductively next to my cheek, and my white blouse was only slightly buttoned, thus revealing my pleasing cleavage.

He mentally moaned when I rummaged through his thoughts.

* * *

**Lemons, skip if you are uncomfortable**

* * *

Haku had little patience for undoing clothing, he would just make all of my clothes magically disappear before taking me, today was different only because in his lust frenzy he had ripped my clothes from off of me. My blouse and black pencil skirt were now tossed on the floor. I was standing gloriously nude in front of him. I removed his clothes. Slowly letting my hands linger over his muscled torso. I undid his pants quickly and stayed there in awe, admiring, contemplating and desiring.

Kohaku pressed me against the wall and I gladly spread my legs for him. Moaning as I felt his erection against my clitoris. He bit down on my shoulder has he supressed a moan when he started moving inside me.

He kept his mouth on my neck, kissing and moaning. He lifted me up and I wrapped my legs around his waist. We quickly made our way to his desk. He laid me on it and continued moving inside me relentlessly. I couldn't think, my body was instinctively moving and seeking more pleasure. Haku was an incredible lover, both savage and loving at the same time.

I let out a small yelp of pleasure as he penetrated me forcefully. He eyed me quickly to make sure that he hadn't hurt me, but he grinned when I urged him to continue. He started moving faster, wanting me to reach my climax. It seemed like seconds and yet it took forever before we both climaxed and he fell on top of me.

Our bodies were sweaty and I could feel all the tension that was inside of us slowly drip away. I kissed him lovingly as he closed his eyes.

"I love you." He muttered contently in my ear.

"Love you too." I replied happily. "Come on. Let's go take a nice bath."

* * *

**End of Lemons**

* * *

He groaned, but got off me. I took his hand and guided him to the bathroom. I opened the door slowly. He walked in the middle of the room, next to the tub, and pulled a golden lever. Warm orange scented water came pouring into the tub. He stepped in first and held out his hand. I took it and he helped me get into the tub. The warmth of the water was nice, especially after our physical activities. Haku washed me, and although we both started feeling similar urges again, we contained them. We knew I had my training with Zeniba.

Once done, we dressed quickly and made our way to Yubaba's office. Zeniba was a patient, but demanding teacher.

She thought me how to channel my magic, but today she looked at me sheepishly.

Haku sat down on the couch and looked at me with a strange hungry look. Hungrier than usual anyhow.

We started training. Zeniba attacked me with everything she had in her arsenal. Today it was easier for me to use magic. I didn't feel my manna drain has quickly has it would have usually.

Our training lasted hours, and yet I wasn't tired at all. I felt full of energy.

"This is strange." Zeniba said panting. She eyed Kohaku and turned her attention back to me. "Your bond is complete and yet I can feel something growing stronger."

She walked towards the window and looked outside.

She sighed.

I blinked confused.

In one swift movement she turned around and cast a curse on me. Haku hissed and jumped out of the couch; hoping to protect me. The black beam of magic shot towards me was moving fast and strait like an arrow.

But something stopped the curse, a beautiful pink aura surrounded me and the curse disappeared has it hit my body.

The aura acted like a shield, but disappeared once the danger had passed.

"What the Hell you old bat!" Haku screamed angrily now placing himself in front of me. He was in a half-crouch ready to pounce on Zeniba at any given moment.

"Oh, don't worry Haku." She said irritated.

He growled menacingly.

Boh and Yubaba walked into the office after hearing the entire ruckus. They looked confused at Haku's menacing demeanour.

Boh looked at his mother seeking answers to his unasked questions, but she had none to give him. She instead crossed her arms and took a long whiff of air. She smelled the curse that Zeniba had cast. Yubaba turned to her sister who by now was frowning at us.

"Chihiro is not the one will destroy the darkness." She said pensively.

"What?" Yubaba asked.

Haku growled protectively again. A warning, he was reminding them that his top priority was my security.

"Chihiro will not be strong enough on her own to destroy it." Zeniba continued.

Yubaba raised her eyebrow, she was about to speak, but then she understood what her sister was saying. A long scowl formed on her old lips.

Boh still too young and innocent didn't understand what his mother and aunt were saying. "But isn't that why Haku and Sen are mated?"

Haku hissed under his breath. He too was starting to understand what was going on. His hands balled up into fits… the constant desire, the increase in my magical ability, my vomiting. It had nothing to do with my training—

I gasped.

"I'm pregnant." I muttered.

My hands quickly went to rest on my stomach and I looked down at it. I wasn't going to be the one to destroy the darkness… my unborn hybrid child was.

I felt sick.

"This will be the first hybrid in centuries." Zeniba said, "the first not to be killed at his birth."

"I'm pregnant—" I repeated to myself in utter disbelief.

"But I wasn't desiring for a child." Haku said confused.

"Humans are highly fertile." Yubaba reminded him.

"I'm pregnant." I repeated more vigorously. I was now realizing that it was the child who had protected us from Zeniba's curse.

* * *

Tun-tun-tun

Don't forget to review.

* * *

***Chasm**: Ancient Greeks described chasm has nothingness.

***Gaia:** Is the personification of planet earth. She was the first goddess or titan created by chasm. She gave birth to Uranus, Tartara, Oceanus, and many others.

***Eros:** God of sensual love, he is placed at the beginning of all things, although he is later associated with being the son of Aphrodite.

***Tartara**: Dark and horrible region far below the earth.

***Erebos and Dark Night**: Usualy associated with Tartara and Hades. It is the realm of darkness.

***Bright air and Day**: The opposite of Erebos.

***Uranus**: Is the personification of the sky. He was later castrated by his son Kronos and when his testicles fell into the ocean they gave birth to Aphrodite.


End file.
